Now is the time to harvest rainwater - WATER IS A byproduct of star formation. It has been established as the essential precursor to life in the universe. The number of planets in the "Goldilocks" zone where water remains in its liquid form in the Milky Way Galaxy is currently estimated at 40 billion planets. Luckily, we live on one of those water planets: 71 percent of Earth is covered with liquid water. Only 2.5 percent of the Earth's water is not saltwater, however, and less than 0.3 percent of that is available in the form of streams or lakes and as a component of our atmosphere. The amount of "potable water" on our planet is actually very small. >> more

Harvesting rainwater is economical - The ancient Chinese theory of the “Five Elements” holds that the world is formed of five materials: water, earth, wood, metal and fire. For water to be listed as one of the five basic elements indicates its importance. Here, water primarily refers to rainwater, the use of which can be traced back to the primitive society. In Ghana, persistent water shortage situations are part of normal everyday life in many rural settlements and some urban centres, particularly the peri-urban areas.Many communities in several parts of the country still rely on surface water such as streams, rivers, lakes, ponds, dug-outs and reservoirs. These sources often serve as drinking places for animals as well. The health hazards posed by this situation are far reaching. >> more

Rainwater Harvesting Cleans Up with Hydro In Downtown Monterrey - A GROUND-BREAKING drainage project in downtown Monterrey has created a sustainable blueprint for rainwater re-use, which experts hope can be replicated to help tackle the joint challenges of urban regeneration and water-scarcity across Mexico. Monterrey is the capital of Nuevo Leon state in the north east of Mexico. With a population of 4 million it is the third biggest city in Mexico. In the arid northern regions of the country, water scarcity is becoming an increasing problem caused by over-extraction from underground aquifers. >> more

November 2013

WK Dickson’s Award Winning Study Shows the Viability of Rainwater Harvesting in a Small NC Town - WK Dickson & Co., Inc. has received an Engineering Excellence Award from the American Council of Engineering Companies of North Carolina for their work on the innovative Rainwater Harvesting project in Kernersville, North Carolina. Kernersville is a picturesque small town in the Appalachian foothills. In the heart of downtown is a Town Hall complex - a magnet for residents with its town library, farmer’s market and site of a variety of weekend festivals. But despite its charming setting even Kernersville has been caught up with prevailing regulatory requirements for stormwater pollution cleanup.

Caribbean Looks to the Sky for Water Security - A centuries-old system for ensuring water security is making a comeback in the Caribbean. It's known as rainwater harvesting, and it is now becoming a formal part of the region's strategic planning in the face of not only more and stronger storms, but droughts as well. By 2100, there could be a 20 to 30 percent decrease in precipitation, research shows, making every drop count. "Rainwater harvesting is, in fact, seen as one of the important tools to ensure resilience and redundancy in Caribbean water supplies, in particular to augment existing municipal water supplies," Dr. Natalie Boodram, manager of the Global Water Partnership-Caribbean (GWP-C), told IPS. "Rainwater can provide a backup water supply in case of disruption."

Can Colorado escape 19th-century thinking? - When national magazines continue to feature articles on economical water saving employing new advances in rainwater harvesting, Reuse, Desal, and Debracking; we are baffled that progressive Western states such as Texas, California, and Arizona lead the way to bigger and getter savings, with never a mention of the ski and outdoor mecca of the west, called Colorado. Could it be that we are shackled by 1880's mining laws, masquerading as public policy panaceas, actually called water law? The October 2013 Water Quality Products magazine includes a special section on rainwater harvesting, only with a new twist. The piece details some new programs where the emphasis is on commercial rainwater harvesting, collecting water from the roofs of huge factories, warehouses, and computer server data storage buildings; to specifically generate a flow for water purification plants as well as a flow for direct agricultural irrigation.

Repurposed parachutes become low-cost portable rainwater harvesters - One innovative initiative in Africa is repurposing old parachutes as rainwater harvesters to collect drinking water in semi-arid areas with seasonal rains, where roofs of thatch or mud aren't feasible for rainwater catchment systems. Rainchutes, which is a project from PITCHAfrica, in collaboration with ATOPIAResearch, offers an alternative domestic rainwater harvesting system using decommissioned parachutes. The resulting system is lightweight, portable, and low-cost, and could make the difference in water poverty in many regions with appropriate amounts of rainfall.

Rain Barrels: Living with Drought, Rain or Shine - Did you spend the summer anguishing over watering restrictions? Maybe you couldn’t sleep for wondering when San Antonio would reach Stage Four. Perhaps you nearly had a nervous breakdown as you watched your grass turn a shade of crispy brown. Well, friend, let me give you a Rainwater Revival intervention. Saturday might have been a clear, crisp fall day in Boerne, but inside the Boerne Civic Center it was raining a solid schedule of rainwater harvesting information at the 4th annual Rainwater Revival. This Hill Country Alliance (HCA) event brought together a full day’s schedule of rainwater experts and professionals to teach and demonstrate a sure way to end all your water woes.

September 2013

Paje urges construction of water impounding facilities - Philippine's Environment Secretary Ramon Paje on Saturday pushed for the construction of more water impounding facilities such as dams ease flooding and to enable the irrigation of farms during the dry season. In a press statement, Paje said the construction of small water impounding dams (SWID) was part of the physical development plan proposed by the Cabinet cluster on climate change. Rainwater harvesting facilities like SWIDs are proven effective for managing rainwater which could be used as a supplemental source of water for irrigation, he said>> more

July 2013

How to Build a Rainwater Collection System - I recently helped my father install a 275 gallon rainwater collection system. The system is based on an industrial 275 gallon container known as an IBC. You can buy them used, or if you really look around, you can even find them for free. One problem with typical rain-barrels is that they can only collect 55 gallons. This rain storage container collects five times that volume, while not taking up all that much more space than a single rain barrel. >> more

Stormwater management system installed at $450M FL ultra-green development - A unique stormwater management-rainwater harvesting system and solar panel array was installed at Tampa Bay Housing Authority's new Ultra-Green Inner-City Development known as "Encore Tampa" in Tampa, Fla., to help create a sustainable and environmentally friendly community. The 18,000 square foot, stormwater retention-harvesting system includes a Storm Capture vault composed of (146) 10' tall Storm Capture modules that can hold up to 33,000 cubic feet of water >> more

Water supply to be disconnected if RWH is not implemented - Property owners having over 2,400 square feet will have to get ready to spend some more money if they have not implemented rain water harvesting (RWH) on their property. The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has directed all owners/occupiers of properties having a site area of 2,400 sq. ft. and above to implement rain water harvesting by August 3, 2013. >> more

Drought recovery: Save the rain - Stan Abbott, Director, Roof Water Harvesting Centre, Massey University Wellington. Climate-associated risks to water supplies and water scarcity are problems increasingly being faced not only by many countries overseas but even in so called ''water rich'' New Zealand. Recently many regions around New Zealand experienced the adverse effects of a long, hot summer and because of the drought some local authorities imposed stringent water restrictions and encouraged householders to implement water conservation measures to lower the demand for reticulated water. nators call for more rainwater harvesting. CInexplicably however, very few local authorities seemed to be actively encouraging householders to install rainwater tanks before, or even during the drought. >> more

May 2013

City looks at harvesting rainwater - Water conservation initiatives will be considered as the City of New Westminster works on its 2014 to 2018 financial plan. The city is interested in the potential of rainwater harvesting systems in New Westminster arenas and greenhouse as a means of conserving water. Staff will incorporate water conservation projects into future budget deliberations.>> more

LA MESA COUNCIL APPROVES COMMUNITY MEETINGS ON BUDGET, POSTPONES ACTION ON GRAYWATER HARVESTING - Mayor Art Madrid wanted to develop a Graywater and rainwater harvesting ordinance for residential use in La Mesa. Madrid informed everyone that there is currently a process to issue permits for free water use. “Two primary sources are the Sierra Mountains and Colorado River. Both of those sources are in deep trouble,” he said, noting that water has become increasingly scarce. “We can still have a rain water harvesting policy,” he assured. enators call for more rainwater harvesting. Councilmember Ruth Sterling was very vocal about this at a recent workshop. “La Mesa should be an example in watering bushes and trees in medians. And all new homes should have graywater capability.” >> more

March 2013

Senators call for more rainwater harvesting - Senators call for more rainwater harvesting. The Senate yesterday passed a motion requesting that the Government consider crafting a policy mandating that future residential developments include rainwater harvesting systems. The motion, which was moved by Opposition Senator Dr Christopher Tufton, also recommended that the Government conduct a review of the nation's existing water policy. According to the motion, which was unanimously passed, the proposed measures are critical components that could help to drive the development of a drought-resilient society in Jamaica. In moving the motion, Dr Tufton noted that for several reasons, the National Water Commission has not been able to properly meet the water demand of citizens. He said this has resulted in severe hardships for families across several communities. >> more

Drought triggers Senate support for rainwater harvesting - As parts of the island continue to experience drought, the Senate says it wants the Government to review existing water policy and insert a requirement for new housing development plans to include rainwater harvesting systems. Approximately half of Jamaica is now being affected by worsening drought conditions, due to the current dry season which is approaching its halfway mark. Eight parishes have been experiencing drought conditions ranging from 'normal' to 'severe'. >> more

University of Arizona students installing new rainwater-harvesting systems - UA students are installing rainwater-harvesting systems in a class that helps the campus continue to improve its environmental sustainability. The class initially worked on the University of Arizona's oldest building, Old Main, which was sinking into the ground. Rainwater would run off the roof and puddle at the bottom of the building, but the land was too flat for the water to move, so it soaked into the ground and weakened the foundation. The students designed a system to "bring water away from the building and into little basins so that it would soak in near the vegetation," said Jim Riley, then a professor in the soil, water and environmental science department. >> more

February 2013

North Texans are turning to rainwater collection - Fulfilling the state’s water needs is a major issue in this year’s legislative session. The 50-year water plan under discussion counts on conservation for almost one-fourth of the additional water supplies needed in Texas over the next 50 years. One 55-gallon barrel is not going to hold enough to water your lawn, but it will water a lot of houseplants, says Clint Wolfe, urban water program manager for the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension and Research Center in Richardson. Since ordinances and regulations vary, homeowners should check with their city before installing a major system. In general, municipalities prohibit tanks in a front yard, and tanks in side and backyards must be screened. The collection opening also must be topped with a screen for mosquito control. Homeowners associations, by state law, can regulate where tanks are placed but not forbid them.>> more

January 2013

Carrier Dome to start harvesting rainwater in summer 2014 - The Carrier Dome will make the most out of the Syracuse weather starting in summer 2014, when it becomes the only stadium dome in the country to partake in rainwater harvesting. Rainwater will be used to flush public toilets and urinals during games and other events, said Bruce Wanlass, principal engineer at C&S Companies, the Syracuse-based engineering consulting firm leading the project. The $1.35 million project will be made possible through a grant from the Environmental Facilities Corporation.>> more

Regional Business Coalition Forms Alliance With Rainwater Harvesting Association To Boost Region’s Water Supply - Studies by the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District indicate that over the next 20 years water demand in the metro Atlanta region could exceed one billion gallons of water per day. Metro Atlanta relies primarily on surface water from reservoirs and rivers for its water supply needs, simply because ground water is very limited in the area. Conservation measures are critical to insure adequate water resources for the future growth of the metropolitan Atlanta region. Rainwater harvesting could provide a significant option to add to future resources.>> more